This is a list of 12 things that might help you get past the urge to
hurt. Bear in mind that some of these may seem too hard when you're
really severely depressed, but if just one of them is something you
can do, it'll help.
- Do something for someone -- a child, a friend, a partner.
- Do something for yourself -- a haircut, new clothes, a massage.
- Do something for your home -- garden, plant a tree, put on some
cool music and clean your closet or a drawer.
- Have eight people to dinner. Use your good china and best recipes.
- Take three upbeat friends to lunch. (If you're as broke as I am,
just go to lunch with three upbeat friends, or even make it a picnic.)
- Plan a vacation. You can even make it your dream vacation; for
right now, the planning counts more than the execution.
- Exercise -- swim, dance, jog, walk.
- Do volunteer work somewhere. Amazingly, being a crisis counselor
helped me get through some rough times (and it built good feelings
about myself).
- Follow the AA formula of HALT -- take action to avoid being
Hungry, Angry, Lonely, or Tired.
- Talk to someone you trust. Join the self-harm list, and post. It's
an invaluable resource.
- Join a club or take a course.
- Sing along to the radio -- even if you "know" you can't sing. do
it as loudly as possible when no one's around.
List adapted from Kathy Cronkite's book, On the Edge of
Darkness: Conversations about conquering depression. Some of the
suggestions as originally presented didn't seem very realistic.
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